Greg Miller: You Can Become a Better Hunter Today, In One Simple Step

When it’s reduced to half-hour television shows, hunting seems too easy. That’s the beauty of editing and although it makes for good entertainment, the reality is that behind even a short, guided hunt there is still a lot of time and effort put in by someone, or multiple people. This is something worth remembering when you’re heading out on your own to tag a buck in a new area. It’s not going to be easy, or even close to easy.

Recognizing the difficulty and keeping your head up through deerless sits or while getting busted on stand, is a tough task especially if you start tallying up the money you’ve spent and vacation days you’ve burned to not kill a buck. If there is a hunter out there who knows all about the mental aspect, it’s whitetail guru and television host Greg Miller. Having traveled all over the country in search of whitetails has taught Miller to keep a tight leash on his emotions and his reality in check.

“When you travel to hunt it can be hard to stay focused. Oftentimes you’re not sleeping too well, you’re not eating like you should, and it just becomes tough to keep a positive outlook. I learned this years ago when I was working construction and would only get a day or two off to hunt. I took it personally if something went wrong and I wasn’t successful. At one point I had a buddy call me out on it and say that it’s only hunting and that I shouldn’t be so negative. It was an eye-opener for me and I try really hard to not get a bad attitude no matter what happens with the weather, the deer behavior, my gear or whatever. Some things are out of your hands, your outlook isn’t. This isn’t to say I’m a Zen master or anything because I can still get bummed. But now, as opposed to 10 or 20 years ago, I know that I need to get over it and move on. That’s important.”

In the whitetail world we are collectively obsessed with tactics and go-to gear, but rarely admit to the power of attitude. It’s not some new-age philosophy, just a simple acknowledgement of the reality of staying positive – and how that can carry through to the last few minutes of shooting light, when all of the negatives can disappear at the sound of shuffling hooves in the leaf litter.

This Tom Miranda blog features excerpts from his book, The Rut Hunters.

Coming Next Week: Miranda says you need a hunting partner.